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I received the following email from a gentleman named Richard who graciously agreed to permit me to respond to his questions on this blog/podcast.
You have, what I believe to be be, the most informative, no BS, Attorney site I have seen in my 3 mo quest for information…enough of the “smoke up the….”….
I have MRI, X-ray, and medical records that show back problems. I have been seeing a liver specialist. for over a year due to liver disease (he has yet to find source), I have shingles pain flares, and migraine headaches. Depression dating back several years. I have SEVERE diarrhea, that leads to incontinence, and I take 9 diff. medications a day.
All this caused me to leave my career in law enforcement 2 years ago. To top it off, I attempted suicide 02/08…About 3 mos ago, I filed for SSD. My question is this….I have kept a “pain Journal” that I show my pain management doctor, for the last 6 mos. It shows how I feel on any given day, and what i can and can’t do, in my own
words. Some days are good, some days are horrible. Should I send that to DDS?–Richard
Podcast notes and resources:
1. Social Security listings – the fastest way to win a disability case is to show that your condition meets a listing.
2. Functional capacity argument – identify specific problems that impact your work capacity
3. Mental health vs. physical medical problems – which makes for a stronger case?
4. Pain journals – when are they useful?
Jonathan Ginsberg represents clients in disability claims filed with the Social Security Administration.
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About Jonathan Ginsberg
Hi I came upon your site looking for some info concerning mental evaluation. I have one coming up after I re-applied for my disability after three years and this case is sitting at the appeals council in another state. So my attorney talked me into re-filing so this eval is for the new case. Same health probles, but new case.
I don’t think I have anything to worry about with my eval I am really bad depressed and have loads of anxiety and have thought about taking all my medication and end my life. I even called the comp care and told them how I was feeling, but when they ask me if I thought I would do it, I said no.
My disabiliy when I signed up is for my lung problem. I have severe COPD. I have met every listing they have and they still denied me. The judge said I have severe breathing problems and cannot be around any dust, fumes, gases and anything else. But said I was able to work?? What the heck is that all about.
Actually I had anxiety when I filed and still do, but the depression comes from having to live like I do becasue they keep denying me. I lost everything I had, moved into a govt. apartment, lost my car, no money at all.. on the grace of my town and friends, churches and any thing free I can get. Hell wouldn’t you be depressed too knowing you cannot have a life? I feel they have made me depressed by putting off my case and denying me. It is there fault ! I get bitter and angry about this too.
I know you don’t know me and I could be just saying anything. I promise you I have met every listing possible so how to get approved is by meeting their listing is not true!!!!!! My attorney is even like wow I cannot beleive they are doing this to you. I am even on home oxygen, neb machine and about 23 different medications. Went to the er room for breathing 14 times in 2006. 8 times in 2007 and 8 times in 2008. Now from cooughing so much I have developed a hernia which has landed me in the hospital 3 times. I thnk they want you to die so they wont have to pay you.
I feel they have put me through so much even as I presented my documents and exceeded their expectations they still deny me and it is wrong humanly wrong to treat people like this. There is a law you cannot mistreat animals, am I less than a animal?
I hope you respond !
Saundra, thanks for your comment. A couple of thoughts:
1. I think it is important to have a treating physician on your side. COPD cases often turn on diagnostic test results, so if you meet a listing there is often not a subjective element for a judge to use to turn you down. You may want to ask your lawyer if the diagnostic test evidence tracks the listing as closely as you think it does.
2. In that same line of thought, you may want to speak to your doctor about creating a narrative report or completing a functional capacity form that concludes that your breathing problems and/or depression create so many work activity limitations that you cannot perform reliably in a job. You do not want to assume that a judge can “read between the lines” of a medical report – it is often more beneficial to you if your doctor “translates” your medical records into specific work limitations, and especially those limitations that impact on your reliability.
Best of luck to you.
Jonathan
I finally found your reply.. According to my lawyer she said I have met the listings. My Doctor has sent in a form that list my limitations. Actually he has sent in several forms and a letter. Upon taking breathing test I cannot even hardly take them. They take a picture of me and I start blowing and she tries like three times and I just cannot do it. It has proven I get punemonia about every two to three months my records shows this. I don’t even see how I function as much as I do and it is very little with all the medication I am on. I sleep 6 hours out of 12. I cannot understand why they think someone as bad as I am can pick up their oxygen tank and their nebulizer and take all my medications and stay awake all day. Talking to coustomers coughing in their face all the time. Hacking and spitting, choking and going into anxiety attacks from not breathing correctly. It seems to me something is terribly wrong with this picture. I cannot even walk no more than 15 feet. I cannot sit for no longer than 15-20 minutes without swelling and going numb. I am snappy, nervous, crying,yelling,sad,cannot not understand some things may have to repeat,get things mixed up alot, cannot be around any candles, perfumes, gases or fumes, damp buildings. Sometimes you do feel like ending it, I personally think it is against the law to treat someone like this. You are so wonderful to have this site for all us who are going under, it seems like there might be a ray of hope for some with the answers you give, but I don’t know about myself, seems like there isn’t any answers for my situation. I go for the mental eval soon I hope she/he can see how this all has effected me I don’t think I will ever be the same. I am on three depression medications and they don’t even help. Actually they might, cause I ain’t killed someone yet.